Bed and the like



A. PUPIER BED AND THE LIKE Sept. 17, 1935.

3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Nov. 30, 1932 I f5.2. I fl K R L@ #MLV A TToHIYL-'i N ak "ih 75l/md Sept. 17, 1935.y

BED AND THE LIKE Filed Nov, so, 1.932 s sheets-sheet 2 ATTOR/YFIS.

A. EUPIER 2,014,508

Sept. 17, 1935. A. PUPuaf-fl 2,014,508

BED AND THE LIKE Filed Nov. 30, 1932 5 SheeS-Sheell ATvR N515' 55TY positions, the electric current of the shifting mo- Patented Sept. 17, 1935 UNITED STAT Application November 30, 1932, Serial No. 644,987

Y In France December 2, 1931 2 Claims.

or the like) in order to allow for preventing or curing stomach sickness in general and more particularly the nausea of gravid women, seasiokness and similar sickness on board of terrestrial `or aerial transporting means, mountain-sickness and so on. Y

A principal feature of the invention consists in the provision of means for lowering the part of the resting pieces of furniture which supports the head or the upper part of the body below the horizontal plane forming the upper part of the piece of furniture or, more exactly, below the horizontal or substantially horizontal plane of support for the body of the person resting on said piece of furniture, in order to cause an afflux of blood to the head in general and more particularly to the medulla oblongata and thus to prevent or cure the sickness.

Another feature of the invention consists in that the lowering and the raising of the part of the piece of furniture supporting the head or the upper part of the body are effected through a mechanical, electrical, hydraulic or pneumatic control or the like of such a kind that the movable part of the piece of furniture may progressively pasa-while further supporting the head or the upper part of the body of the person lying downfrom the normal horizontal or substantially horizontal position to a lowered Vposition and conversely, and, on the other hand, may remain fixed in the selected position at will.

YAnother feature of the invention resides in the fact that the control of the movable part ofthe piece of furniture is so arranged that the member by means of which the person restingV on the piece of furniture actuates the movable part of said piece of furniture is placed immediately within the reach of rthe hand of the person in question in order thatV this person, when qualmish or stomach sick or when feeling that he or she yis going to become qualmish or stomach sick,

may himself or herself and without the aid of any other person and without strain eifect the desired shifting for lowering or raising the movable vpart of the piece of furniture.

The invention further has for its object a particular control device by means of which the above mentioned conditions are obtained4 with and in which, when the movable part of the pieceof furniture has reached either of the extreme (Cl. 12S-74) tor is automatically interrupted in order to avoid a deterioration of said motor and an unnecessary consumption of current.

Different modifications of the invention are shown in the appended drawings, in which 5 Figure 1 is a diagrammatical View showing a framed mattress arranged according to the .in-

vention.

Figure 2 is a plane view of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a View similar to Fig. 1, showing a in modified structure of mattress;

Figure 4 is an end view of an actuating device for the movable part of a framed spring mettress according to Figure 1. Y

Figure 5 is a side elevation of another form 15 of the control device.

Figure 6 is an end view of Figure 5.

Figure 7 is a plan view.

Figure 8 is a diagram of the electrical connections of a device similar to the device shown in 20 Figures 5, 6 and 7.

As shown in Figure 1, the mattress is in two sections juxtaposed edge to edge, one part, asi, being conveniently termed the foot portion of the mattress and the other part 2 comprising the 25 head portion. The foot portion may be a relatively xed part, whereas the head portion is movable, and in this view is shown hinged to swing upon'an axis 3 next the edge toward the xed part or foot portion. The hinging isV preferably effected by use of aligned trunnions 3 and sa at the sides of the mattress next the upper surface thereof so as to avoid any hard or uncomfortalole parts extending across the mattress.

The two abutting parts 4 and 55 of the framed 35 spring mattress forming the ends of the fixed part i and of the movable part 2 respectively at their opposite faces are tapered in order to permit the swinging of the part 2 with respect to the part i below the horizontal plane, as shown 40 in dot and dash lines at Ea in Figure 1.

According to the alternative form of Figure 3, the movable part 2 is formed of a tight cushion inflated with air or filled with a fluid and properly proportioned so as to be when inflated, level with the upper part of the fixed part l of the mattress. By deiiating the movable part 2 by means of the three-way valve l arranged on the feeding pipe 'i or the discharge pipe le for the uid serving to inflate the cushion, it is possible to bring the upper part 2 of the movable part of the mattress to the position shown in dot and dash lines at 2d of Figure 3.

. The invention is not limited to the specific proportions of xed and movable foot and head portions shown, it being understood that the length of the head portion may be increased with a corresponding decrease of the foot portion to any desired limit. However, in general, it would be suiiicient for the purposes sought, to provide for a lowering of the upper part (head and torso) of the occupants body, so that the movable part need extend usually no further toward the feet than the occupants diaphragm, that is, to his midril.

The control device for the movable part 2 shown in Figure 4 is formed of an electric motor Y 8 for driving a speed reducing device 9, the secondary shaft I9 of which is coupled through Ia coupling sleeve II with the axis 3 of the movable part 2 of the mattress. Said axis rotates in a bearing I2 mounted on the side post I3 of the bed. Said side post I3 comprises a console I4 supporting the electric motor 8 and the speed reducing device.

Y On the axis 3 is keyed a stirrup I5 passing under the bed and making the axis 3 a unitary part of the axis 3a, this latter swinging in a` bearing It' mounted on the side post I1 of the bed.

The whole is arranged so that when the electric motor 8 rotates in one direction, the axis 3 is rotated and consequently the stirrup i5 and the axis 3a in the same direction, and when the electric motor 8 rotates in the opposite direction, the axis 3, the stirrup I 5 and the axis Se are rotated in the same opposite direction. The movable part 2 of the mattress being rigid or integral with the axes 3 and 3a, it follows from this that, according to the direction of rotation of the electric motor 8, the movable part 2 of the mattress will be lowered below the horizontal plane or raised in order to return to a horizontal plane. Y

It will be apparent that the rotation of the axes 3 and 3a can be extended in order to bring the movable part 2 above the horizontal plane for providing a support for the head or for the upper part of the body.

In Figures 5 and 7 the side post i3 of the bed has been removed in order to show to better advantage the control device for the movable part 2 of the mattress. The control device is formed here of two levers I8, lila operated by two cams I9, i9@ mounted on a common axis 23 running from the post I3 to the post I1 of the bed. At I2 and I2a are shown the bearings supporting the axes 3 and 3e of the movable part 2 of the mattress. The axis 29 of the cams I9 and I 9a carries a worm gear 2I engaging a worm 22 driven by Ameans of a coupling sleeve 23 through speed reducing device 24 receiving its movement from the electric motor 25. The speed reducing device and the electric motor are xed on a crossbar 2S suspended from the posts I3 and I1 of the bed. The gear 2I and the worm 22 are contained in a conventional case 21 (shown in dotV and dash lines in order to be more clearly represented) and which is xed to the post I3 of the bed. The arms I8 and I8a and the'cams I9, I9a are so dimensioned that for a rotation of the shaft of less than a revolution the movable part of the mattress may pass from its uppermost position, for instance from the horizontal position, to its lowermost position. If the rotation Y in question represents a suncient number of degrees, the slope of the cam I9 can be so arranged that the control device is then irreversible. When causing the motor to rotate in the one direction, the movable part 2 is located as in the preceding device, and when causing the motor to rotate in the opposite direction said part 2 is raised.

The control of the electric motor in either direction is obtained by means of a double direction contactor 23, having two working positions 5 29h and 28 and an intermediary dead center 23a, mounted on the post I3 of the bed immediately within the reach of the hand of the person lying on the bed. It will then be sumcient, when this person desires to lower or raise his or her head 10 or the upper part of his or her body, to actuate i the switch 28 in the desired direction. Owing to the position of the switch said person may do thispractically without being compelled to move or, at least, by eiecting only a very slight displacement of the arm and even only of the hand.

In order that the movable part 2 may be automatically stopped in its uppermost and lowermost positions, the control device may be provided with automatic means for automatically stopping the motor. i

In the control device with the automatic stopping device shown in Figure 8 the circuit of the shunt motor 25, the excitation coil of which is shown at 29, is fed with current by means of fixed contacts 32, 33, 34, coacting with movable contacts 36 and 31 respectively carried by the two cores 33-39 of the two electromagnets iQ-4I. rIhe cores 38 and 39 are connected with or supported by a movable insulating piece 42 30l which carries the contacts 36 and 31 upon a common rod 43. The switch 23 comprises two contact pieces 44 and 45 sliding on two sectors 46-41 respectively.V The contact piece i4 may engage either a contact piece 0,3 or a contact 35 piece 39 for the extreme positions 28" and 28C of the switch 28, In the same manner the contact piece l5 may engage the contact pieces 53 and 5I. Two pairs of contact pieces 52-53 and 54-55 are arranged in the way of a contact 55 40 carried by the switch 28. On the other hand the shaft 29 on which are mounted the cams I9-I9a carries a swinging lever 51-58 acting on a lever 59 pivotally mounted on an axis G9. The lower arm 6I of this lever 59 acts on stops 45 62-63 mounted on a sector G4 loosely mounted on the axis 65. A part 65 or the lever is connected with the axis 29 of the tilting lever 51-58 by a traction spring 66. A swinging part 51 of contact arm 6I is pivoted upon the saine axis 50 i with sector 64, and is adapted to be swung into one of two extremeY positions over dead-center to there impinge against stops 62 or 63 under actuation of a spring 68 similar to .and shown disposed in the drawings directly in front of springs 66 which is thereby substantially hidden from view. The sector 64 carries a contact 39 which may be shifted between two stops 19 and 1I. When the sector S4 turns about its axis 69, said contact 59 passes on two contact pieces 12-13. 60l In the operation of the device, for the position 28a of the switch 28 no current is sent to the motor, as the circuit: pole (-l) Vof the source of current, lead 14, sector 46, contact piece 48 or 49, lead 15 or 16, contact 33, contact 36, contact 32, terminal 30 of the motor, armature 25 and excitation 29 of the motor, terminal 3 I, contact 34, contact 31, contact 35, lead 18 or 11, contact piece 50 or 5I, contact 45, sector 41, lead 19, and negative pole of the source of current is interrupted either in the 70 switch 28 or on the contacts 32, 33, 36 and 34, 35, 31. When the switch is shifted to the position 28h, i. e. for lowering the movable part 2 of the mattress, the contact 56 engages the contact piece 52-53 and the electromagnet 40 is energized by 75 the circuit: lead (-1-), lead 80, contact piece 52, contact piece 53, lead 8 I, coil 40, lead 82, and negative lead of the source of current. This momentary energization of the electromagnet 40 during the passage of the contact 56 across the contact pieces 52-53 has been effective to shift the movable appliance 39, 43, 33, 43, 42, 36 and 31 in the direction of the arrow f1 and to close the circuits 33, 36, 32 and 34, 31, 35. On the other hand, when the lever 28 has reached the position 28h, it has completed the circuit: lead 14, sector 46, contact 48, lead 15,

contacts 33, 36, 32, terminal 3l), motor 25-29, terminal 3|, contacts 34, 31, 35, lead 13, contact piece 5l), sector 41, lead 19, and minus lead of the source of current. The motor then begins running in the direction by which the lowering of the movable part 2 of the mattress is effected. During said lowering movement the axis 26 rotates in the direction of the arrow f. The swinging lever 51-58 is turned by rotation of axis 20, and one arm, as 51, engages and swings lever 59 about its axis 6I] past dead center, resulting in contact arm 6I engaging stop 62 of the sector 64 and thereby abruptly throwing the sector and its contact 69 to the left under influence of the spring 65 until said contact engages stop 1 I. During its shifting movement, the contact 69 passes rapidly across contacts 12 and 13 resulting in electromagnet 4I being energized through the circuit comprising the minus lead of the source of current, lead 33, coil 4I lead 84, contact piece 13, contact 69, contact piece 12, lead 83 and the plus lead of the source of current. During this momentary energization the movable assembly of the cores 39-38, rod 43, insulating support 42 and contacts 36 and 31 have been shifted to the right in the direction of the arrow f2 thus breaking the contacts 32, 33 with 36 and 34, 35 with 31 and accordingly stopping the motor. Lever 28 likewise is connected to a field-reversing switch R (indicated for clarity next the motor) for effecting a reversal of the shunt current and consequent reversal of the motor-when changing the lever 28 from one extreme position to the other. A shifting of the lever 28 to the position 28a brings back the whole to the initial position. If the lever 28 is then shifted to ythe position 28C, the motor 25-29 is energized to rotate in the contrary direction through the circuits which are shown on the figure and when the movable part has reached the end of its raising stroke, the contact 69, being actuated in the contrary direction with respect to the preceding one,

passes again before the contacts 12--13 and inter- 5 rupts again the circuit, thus stopping the motor 25.

Fig. 1 shows a mechanical device for oscillating the portion 2 which comprises a cam I9 acting on the movable portion 2 and rotating around an axis 10 26. This cam I9 is actuated by a rocking hand 1 lever 19a b-y means of a cross chain I9b meshing with pinions I9c and I9d respectively mounted on the axis 20 and on the hand lever I9a. The periphery of the cam I9 is so designed that when 15 the portion 2 of the mattress has reached its up- 1 per position the lever I9a can be further rotated without moving the portion 2 until the said lever is brought to a horizontal position.

What I claim is: 20

1. In a device for preventing or curing sickness a fixed mattress portion, a movable mattress portion hinged upon the said fixed portion around two horizontal trunnions, an electrical motor, a speed reducing device between the said motor and one of 25 the above said trunnions, an electric switch coni trolling the said electric motor for selective rotation in either direction and located at about the half of the total length of the xed and movable mattress portions and electrical means for stop- 30 ping the electric motor when the desired positions of the said movable portion have been reached.

2. The combination of a bedstead having two longitudinal beams, a fixed mattress portion located between said beams, a movable mattress portion also located between said beams and hinged upon the said fixed portion around two horizontal trunnionsl rotating in bearings carried by the above-said beams, an electric motor, a speed reducing device between the said motor and one of the above-said trunnions, an electric switch controlling the said electric motor for selective rotation in either direction and located at about the half of the total length of the fixed and movable mattress portions, and electrical means for stopping the electric motor when the desired positions of the said movable portion have been reached.

ANDRE PUPIER. 

